A Little Child Like Me

Last October while babysitting my 3 year old nephew, he asked if he could play a game that he enjoyed on my electronic tablet. Coincidentally, the battery had died and I had just plugged it in to charge. I explained that he would need to wait a little while in order to play for more than just a minute. That seemed to satisfy him, but about two minutes later he ran back and asked if it was ready yet. "No," I said, "not yet."

Just a few minutes later, he came back a third time to ask if it was ready, and before I could finish the word, "No," his tiny hands had formed into tight fists and his big brown eyes welled-up as he tearfully shouted, "Stop saying that!"

I took him into my arms and replied, "I'm so sorry, sweetheart. You'll just have to wait."

A few days later, I sat listening General Conference. With no family of my own and a somewhat less-than-mediocre career, my heart was heavy with the disappointment of things in my life that had not happened as I had hoped they would by now. I listened intently as President Henry B. Eyring gave his talk, Where Is the Pavilion?

As he spoke the words, "we can’t insist on our timetable when the Lord has His own," I distinctly and firmly thought to myself, "Oh, I'm so tired of hearing that!" I was startled as immediately the image of that little boy, desperate for me to change my answer just a few days earlier, came into my mind. This time the tears were in my own eyes. It seemed as though my Heavenly Father was taking me into His arms as my own words came back to me:

"I'm so sorry, sweetheart. You'll just have to wait."

At that moment I knew that the Lord was aware of the desires of my heart and began to understand that while He sincerely wants us to be happy, He truly knows what and when is best. I felt an overwhelming gratitude for the blessings I have received, and a renewed patience for blessings yet to come.